Portola Valley House by SAW Architects Has a Moving Backstory

This article highlights Moksha, a private residence by Spiegel Aihara Workshop (SAW) in Portola Valley, California. Conceived as a meditative retreat, it is perched on a three-acre bluff with sweeping views of San Francisco.

Born from a deeply personal story, the project weaves together themes of renewal, memory, and philanthropy as a response to loss. It also showcases a craft-focused approach to materials, form, and light that aligns with SAW’s design philosophy.

Overview: Moksha on a Portola Valley Bluff

Moksha is a thoughtfully integrated home that anchors three levels of activity and contemplation into a sloping landscape. The 7,800-square-foot main house sits alongside a 1,200-square-foot guest cottage, both oriented to maximize expansive outlooks while creating intimate, sheltered pockets.

The architecture leans into the site’s topography, using cantilevered features and a careful arrangement of spaces to choreograph daylight, views, and quiet moments. The result is a meditative retreat that invites shifting light and changing weather to participate in daily life.

The commission came from Aruna and Sanjiv Gambhir, whose shared journey with illness and loss gave the project personal meaning. After Milan, the Gambhirs’ teenage son, passed away in 2015, and during the long permitting period, Sanjiv himself died.

Aruna carried the project forward as a tribute to both men. The home’s name, Moksha, speaks to release and spiritual renewal, and the broader project supports cancer research through endowments at UCLA and Stanford, honoring Milan and Sanjiv as part of the architectural narrative.

Genesis: Personal Loss, Purposeful Making

From the outset, Moksha was envisioned as a space for reflection and healing. The narrative of loss and perseverance shaped decisions about form, materials, and layout.

Aruna’s stewardship after the family’s tragedies reflects a belief that architecture serves human needs beyond shelter. The project’s meaning extends into its financial legacy: the sale of the finished home last year enabled cancer research professorships in the name of Milan and Sanjiv.

Architecture, Form, and Materials

The design emphasizes renewal and aging gracefully through material choice and detailing. Reclaimed and salvaged elements contrast with modern construction techniques to create a sense of timelessness.

Key material strategies include salvaged old-growth redwood siding and rainscreens, repurposed redwood from a previous house, board-formed concrete, and reclaimed blue-gum eucalyptus flooring. These choices reflect a careful approach, extending the life of materials as part of the building’s story.

Two aspects of the structure stand out: a second level that cantilevers and twists to optimize views, daylighting, and solar shading, and walls of windows that animate the interiors with shifting light. Together, they foster a dynamic connection between interior spaces and the changing exterior environment.

• salvaged old-growth redwood siding and rainscreens
• repurposed redwood from the previous house
• board-formed concrete
• reclaimed blue-gum eucalyptus flooring
• cantilevered, twist-intensive second level for views and daylighting
• expansive walls of windows

Spatial Experience: Private Nooks and Contemplative Moments

SAW designed Moksha to balance openness with inward focus. A sequence of private, introverted pockets—such as a pool deck that shifts between panoramic exposure and enclosed seclusion, a cozy breakfast nook, a restorative sauna, and a redwood-enclosed courtyard—offers moments of quiet reflection within a landscape-rich setting.

The layout invites a contemplative rhythm, enabling residents or guests to move from social spaces to intimate corners that encourage rest, meditation, or study. Every corner, material, and view serves a sense of rebirth and memory, turning the home into a living memorial that respects the past while embracing the present and future.

Legacy, Endowment, and Impact

Following Aruna’s passing just before completion, Moksha’s sale extended the project’s philanthropic reach. Proceeds endowed cancer research professorships at UCLA and Stanford in Milan and in the Gambhirs’ names, linking architecture to science, care, and community resilience.

Implications for Practice

For practitioners in architecture and engineering, Moksha offers a compelling case study in compassionate design. It shows how a project can respond to life’s fragility with durable materials and site-sensitive form.

The work demonstrates how to balance technical performance, such as structure, daylighting, and solar shading, with a program that honors memory and fosters healing.

 
Here is the source article for this story: This magnificent California house has a backstory as moving as its architecture